Skyhawks storm to 6 victories in a row

The red-hot Skyhawks just continue to roll on back toward the upper reaches of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.

The Fort Lewis College women’s basketball team turned in a very business-like performance Friday, earning its sixth consecutive win and seventh win in eight games by downing Regis 73-58 in Denver.

“I told them after the game I’m just really proud of them.” FLC head coach Jason Flores said. “We’re trying to get better, and they’ve taken it, and they’ve gotten better, and they’ve played really well as a team.”

Christie Groh was the catalyst for FLC in the first half, and Erika Richards sparked the offense after intermission. Groh finished just shy of a double-double with 18 points and nine rebounds, while Richards had a team-high 20 points.

Four of the Skyhawks’ starting five finished in double figures, while Alex Easterbrook scored 12 and Ashley Kuchar 10.

“Christie had a great first half. ... We didn’t want to live and die by the 3-point shot coming out,” Flores said. “We got the ball inside in good offensive rhythm, and she was scoring and gave us that momentum and loosened it up a bit so our perimeter players could get going a little bit.”

The goal for the Skyhawks (8-6, 7-3 RMAC) was to limit Sarah Feeney, who came in averaging 16 points per game, and force the Rangers (6-8, 5-5 RMAC) to look elsewhere. That plan appeared to work, as FLC held Regis to 36-percent shooting and Feeney to just four points.

Tae’lor Purdy picked up the slack, scoring 21 with 10 rebounds, but the move stole some of Regis’ offensive thunder.

“We picked our poison a little bit,” Flores said. “Feeney’s a great player. ... We knew we wanted to bracket her and make it tough.